Finding Your Own Way
by The IllumAnatee
Summary: Ibuki lives in Blackthorn City with her sister, Clair. However, she hates Dragon Pokemon, so she runs away to the Unova region. There, she finds an amazing adventure, filled with friends, enemies and old faces.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello and welcome to the Super Dangan Ronpa 2/Pokemon crossover! Or just call it Finding Your Own Way. Which ever floats your boat.**

**It's a co-write between GreenPokeGuy and **me(Nico Nico Nii You in The Face) **! We both love Pokemon and Ibuki Mioda so, we're writing this.**

**Disclaimer- Green and I own NONE of the characters! They either belong to Pokemon or Dangan Ronpa.**

* * *

"UWA! Big dragon!"

"Jeez, Ibuki you have to get over your fear one day..."

Ibuki Mioda let out an annoyed sigh as she watched her older sister, Clair, train a Dragonite. Truth be told, Ibuki disliked all of the dragon-type Pokemon. If they were Salamence or Dragonite, she hated them. Especially the Pokemon known as Gyarados, oh that Pokemon gave her too many nightmares when younger. So many that she's actually frightened of the Pokemon Magikarp.

A. Freaking. Magikarp.

While Ibuki may seem like an oddball around her friends, she's also the 'weirdo' of her family, I guess you could say. Since, she absolutely positively hated dragons and everyone in her family were Dragon Tamers.

So, she always hated family reunions.

Whenever Clair tried to drag her to the Dragon's Den, she would always run off into the ice path, so that Clair would have hard time finding her, while slipping all the while. But, due to Cyndaquil's flame, she would always be found.

* * *

_"Come on, Ibuki..." Clair groaned._

_The Blackthorn City gym leader was trying to not slip everywhere as she walked upon the ice path, in an attempt to find her younger sister. She never understood as to why Ibuki was afraid of dragons. In her family, fear is nothing. Fear can only make you stronger._

_But, in Ibuki's case, it made her weaker._

_"Ibuki!" Clair shouted, stopping at the rocks made of pure ice. She then took notice of a dim flame that was lower than the ground- or ice, she was on. Clair slowly slide towards the flame, before placing a hand at the path's wall, to hold her balance. She looked down._

_Surely enough, there was Ibuki holding her Cyndaquil, who she named Mahiru for reasons Clair never knew._

_"Ibuki." Clair said._

_The younger sister looked up and let out a loud yelp of terror, attempting to stand up, but, slipping, falling and knocking herself out in the process. Clair let out a sigh, slowly going onto the lower ground, picking up her sister's unconscious body before heading out of the Ice Path._

* * *

Then, there's the time where Lance attempted to find her once...

* * *

_Lance sighed as he flew around the Ice Path with his Dragonite, searching for his cousin. After Clair told him that Ibuki ran off to the Ice Path, he asked her why, yet, she told him that he'll find out._

_"Ibuki! Ibuki!" He called out, looking down upon the path, which had Swinubs and Jynx trotting upon it. But, quickly enough he found the small bundle of flames within a certain horned girl's arms. He let out a sigh of relief as his Dragonite landed in front of Ibuki._

_"UWA!"_

_Lance looked confused at Ibuki, as she held her Cyndaquil closer to her. "Ibuki," He said, trying to take the Cyndaquil from her arms. "You're going to burn yourself!"_

_"Ibuki will not let go until the dragon leaves!" The horned girl shouted. Lance's Dragonite growled at her, with Lance's attempt to calm it down, with Ibuki running/sliding off, screaming for Clair, with his Dragonite chasing after her._

* * *

_"Did you bring Dragonite with you-"_

_"Yes."_

_"Did she scream at it-"_

_"Yes."_

_"Then it chased after her?"_

_"Pretty much."_

_"Now, you know that she's terrified of Dragon-types. You most likely made it worst. Way to go."_

_"Gee, thanks Clair. I feel _so _proud."_

* * *

There was a reason as to why Ibuki never allowed Lance to release him Pokemon for training. She would rather stand at the front of her sister's gym, waiting for a trainer to come by and give them that cool water stuff that she never cared about. Sometimes she would give out two because she was probably pissed at Clair on that day.

Ibuki let out a sigh of relief as Clair finished training with the Dragonite. She stood up, picking up Mahiru the Cyndaquil, whom she named after one of her best friends, Mahiru Koizumi.

"I'm going to the Dragon's Den." Clair stated, turning her back on Ibuki. "You're allowed to join me, you know."

Ibuki shook her head. "Ibuki will just stay here. When you come back, Ibuki can make dinner!"

Clair turned around and gave her a soft smile. She walked towards her sister, giving her a pat on the head. "One of these days, I'll drag you into the Dragon's Den." Clair told Ibuki.

Ibuki made her tongue peek out. "We'll see about that, Clair!"

Clair chuckled. "It'll only be ten minutes. Stay here and play with Cyndaquil."

Ibuki gave her blue haired sister a salute as Clair then ran towards the water, summoning a Gyarados to get across, heading towards land and walking into the cave.

Ibuki waited until the cost was clear, before running back to her and Clair's house, taking out her bicycle.

"Alright Mahiru!" Ibuki gushed, placing Mahiru into the white basket on her neon blue and pink bike. "Today's the beginning of our new destiny! Let's not train with dragon-types!"

Ibuki began to peddle out of Blackthorn city, heading towards the Ice Path.

_"Let's go and defeat Unova's champion!"_

* * *

After making her way through the Ice Path and Mahogany Town, Ibuki found herself in Ecruteak City. The home of where Ho-Oh once was, at the Bell Tower.

To be honest, Ibuki never liked this town. It always had a creepy aura to her and she hated creepy things. Like Morty for example. He was an example of that. Ibuki always thought that he was possessed by a Gengar.

But, there was one thing that Ibuki always wanted to see in Ecruteak City. She always wanted to go to the Kimono Dance Theater. Her good friend, Saionji always talked of how amazing it was, since she lived in Ecruteak City, she was able to see it twice a week. Ibuki always wanted to join her, but, Clair always made her stay home, trying to make her like Dragon-type Pokemon.

Those attempts have never worked though.

Ibuki thought of stopping and watch a show but, then realized that Clair would most likely find her there. Ibuki sighed as she continued to ride through the town, not looking back.

* * *

Clair wasn't surprised when she didn't see her sister or her Cyndaquil. Sighing, she walked towards the Ice Path and headed in.

"Ibuki!" She called out, draping her cape over her shoulder, to fend off the cold. She walked past the Jynx and Swinub, trying to find a familiar pair of horns. It wasn't long until Clair realized that she had reached the end of the path.

"Oh, she ran did not..." She growled.

"IBUKI MIODA! I WILL FIND YOU!" She screamed in the path. Ice from the top of the wall fell behind Clair.

It was a truly frightening sight.

* * *

About maybe 45 minutes later, Ibuki found her way into Olivine City, where the boat to Kanto was. All she had to do was head to Kanto, get on a plane that'll head to Aspertia town, and bam! She's in Unova.

She quickly showed her pass, so, that she could get on the boat. She happily got on as she was the last person that was able to. She looked around at all of the seats, most of them were taken with four or more people, but, then she spotted two seats facing each other, one person on one side and two people on the other.

Ibuki walked up to the group of three. "Uh, can Ibuki sit with you guys?" She asked, as politely as she could. Before the red-haired boy could tell her 'no,' the girl that was on the other side of the bench patted the empty seat to her. "Sure!"

Ibuki quickly sat down next to the girl, holding onto her Cyndaquil.

"You have a Cyndaquil?" A boy with black hair, who sat next to the other boy with red hair, asked Ibuki. "So do I!"

Ibuki smiled at him. "Awesome!" She said, while the boy with red hair rolled his eyes.

* * *

Ibuki had a nice conversation with Ethan(Boy with the black hair) and Lyra(The only girl), also learning that the kid with the red hair was named Silver, which Ibuki heard of before, but, didn't pay no mind to it.

Soon, the boat stopped in Kanto, to Ibuki's happiness, and four said their goodbyes. Ibuki sighed happily as she took in the fresh Kanto air. This was probably the first time she's ever been to Kanto. Now, all she had to do was to get onto a plane!

...Now, where could she find an airport.

* * *

After about 3 hours, searching for an airport, Ibuki quickly boarded the flight to Unova.

Thus, her journey starts now!

No, that's a lie, it starts in like 2 hours.

* * *

After those boring 2 hours, Ibuki found herself on the outskirts of Aspertia Town, riding on her bicycle, with her Cyndaquil in the basket.

"Hm, hm, hmmmm~" She hummed, riding around on her bicycle.

She went up a flight of stairs to a lookout point. When she got there, she realized that there was a young woman standing there, looking at the view. She appeared to be entranced with it. "Yo!" Ibuki called out, and the woman, startled, turned to face Ibuki. She walked over to Ibuki, and Ibuki took note of her blonde hair, orange half-framed glasses and green beret.

"Hi there! I'm Bianca. What's your name?" Bianca asked, and then she took notice of Mahiru. "Aww! Your Cyndaquil is sooo cute!"

"Name's Ibuki Mioda! Ibuki got Mahiru from her sister." Ibuki replied, scratching Mahiru's head, eliciting a content sound from the Cyndaquil. Bianca then appeared to get an idea.

"I know you already have a Pokémon, but how would you like a native from Unova? It looks like you've come a long way, since Cyndaquil are from the Johto region." Bianca suggested, pulling out a cylinder. Ibuki was curious.

"Ooh, Ibuki thinks that sounds fun! More friends!" Ibuki cheered, and Bianca giggled.

"Alright, here they are!" Bianca said, clicking a button on the cylinder, which opened while releasing steam. Three Pokéballs were revealed. Closing her eyes, Ibuki hovered her hand above the Pokéballs, one at a time. She finally rested her hand upon one, and opened her eyes.

"This one." Ibuki said, picking up the Pokéball. She released the Pokémon inside, a Snivy. "Aww, he's so cute! I'm going to call him… Byakuya!" The Snivy crossed his arms. "He even behaves like Byakuya!"

"That one's a Snivy. I'm sure you two will make great partners." Bianca smiled. At that moment, someone rushed up the stairs, and Ibuki turned to see a boy with spiky blue hair, a red and white jacket and blue track pants standing there.

"I heard the commotion up here, and came to check it out." The boy explained his sudden appearance. "Hey, I haven't seen you two around Aspertia before. I'm Hugh."

"My name's Ibuki Mioda, and these two are Mahiru and Byakuya!" Ibuki answered energetically, pointing to her Cyndaquil and Snivy in turn.

"And I'm Bianca. It's nice to meet you, Hugh." Bianca smiled. Her eyes widened. "Wait… Hugh? I came to Aspertia to find a Hugh! But I got caught up in the scenery… You must be the same Hugh." Bianca walked over to Hugh. "I was sent by Professor Juniper to give you this." She pulled out a red device and handed it to Hugh, who inspected it. Bianca then turned to Ibuki. "Coincidentally, the professor gave me two, so here, take this one." Bianca handed Ibuki a pink version of the same device. Ibuki opened it, and she saw a picture of Snivy.

"Is this a Pokédex?" Hugh questioned, having also opened his. "Neat!"

"Pokédex?" Ibuki repeated, confused by the term. Bianca turned to Ibuki.

"A Pokédex is essentially an encyclopaedia that records every Pokémon that you meet. It's an amazing device. You two are very fortunate to get one." Bianca explained, trying to look scholarly.

"Thank you!" Ibuki responded, putting her new Pokédex away. Hugh did the same.

"Well, it was nice meeting you both, but I've got to go. I have something important to do that I need to train up for." Hugh said, starting to walk away.

"Wait!" Bianca called, and Hugh turned back around.

"Huh? What is it?" Hugh asked, coming back.

"If you're both new Trainers, why don't you have a Pokémon battle? It would be a great experience for both of you." Bianca suggested.

"Yaay, Ibuki's first battle! Ibuki accepts!" Ibuki exclaimed, picking up Mahiru and clutching her.

"Alright, sounds good to me." Hugh responded. The two moved to opposite sides of the lookout, Bianca standing in the middle of the sidelines.

"This'll be great to watch! Almost as exciting as my first battle!" Bianca squealed. "I'll be the referee!" Hugh grabbed the Pokéball on his belt and smirked.

"For a new Trainer, I have some experience, so don't expect me to lose easily! Go, Tepig!" Hugh threw the Pokéball, and a Tepig appeared on the battlefield.

"Ibuki has experience, too! But to go easy, I'll use Byakuya!" Ibuki pointed forward, and Byakuya went onto the battlefield, getting into a battle position.

"Begin the battle!" Bianca exclaimed, and the match commenced.

"Byakuya, use Leer!" Ibuki ordered, and Snivy sent a fierce look at Tepig. Tepig looked slightly intimidated.

"Lowering our defences, huh? We'll do the same. Tepig, use Tail Whip!" Tepig charged towards Byakuya, tail in the air.

"Tackle it!" Ibuki countered, and just as Tepig was about to strike, Byakuya flung himself into Tepig, knocking it back. Hugh gritted his teeth.

"That was tough. Tepig, Tackle!" Tepig got up and charged towards the Snivy, a determined look on its face.

"Dodge it, Byakuya!" Ibuki yelled, and Byakuya jumped into the air, Tepig passing under him. Stopping the charge, Tepig looked up at Byakuya.

"Tackle!" Both Trainers yelled, and Byakuya came back down, while Tepig jumped up to meet him. After the initial contact, Tepig's power outmatched Byakuya's, and Byakuya landed on the ground hard, while Tepig landed on all fours.

"Come on, Byakuya! Ibuki believes in you!" Ibuki encouraged, and Byakuya got up, not wanting to disappoint his new Trainer. The two Pokémon stared each other down.

"Tackle again, Tepig!" Hugh yelled, and Tepig charged.

"You too, Byakuya!" Ibuki commanded, and Byakuya also charged. The two met in the middle, and collided. Both Pokémon fell to the ground. Only one got back up, while the other one collapsed.

"We did it!" Ibuki cheered, running onto the field and hugging Byakuya. Hugh picked up Tepig.

"You okay, buddy?" Hugh asked, and Tepig nuzzled into Hugh's arms.

"Tepig is unable to battle! Snivy and Ibuki are the winners!" Bianca announced. She went over to Hugh. "Here, let me heal Tepig." She sprayed Tepig with a potion, and Tepig seemed to regain its energy. She headed over to Ibuki. "Congratulations! That was a great battle! Here, let me heal your Snivy." She sprayed Byakuya with a different potion. "There we go, good as new!"

"Thank you, Bianca!" Ibuki said, grinning at the woman. Bianca nodded. Hugh walked over to the two girls. He stuck out his hand towards Ibuki.

"That was a good battle. We should do it again some time." Hugh said, a half smile on his face. "Maybe you could even help me with Team Plasma when we both get stronger."

"Good fight!" Ibuki exclaimed, shaking Hugh's hand. She adopted a confused expression. "Huh, Team Plasma? Are they like Team Rocket?"

"Uh, somewhat." Hugh replied. "They stole my sister's Purrloin, and I want to get it back. Anyway, see ya!" Hugh walked down the stairs. Bianca turned to Ibuki.

"I think I'm going to stay up here a little while longer. See you around!" Bianca smiled before heading back to look at the view. Ibuki picked up Mahiru, and Byakuya jumped on Ibuki's left shoulder.

"Let's go face Unova!" Ibuki exclaimed, and her Pokémon made noises of agreement. She headed down the stairway, got on her bike, putting her Cyndaquil and Snivy in the basket, and rode out of the city. When she passed the gate onto the first route, she was stopped by a familiar face.

"Ibuki! How nice to see you again!" The figure smiled at her long-time friend.


	2. Chapter 2

"Ibuki! How nice to see you again!"

"GAH! Wait- Chiaki-chan?"

Ibuki looked down at the smaller girl. One of her good friends, Chiaki Nanami, was here in Unova, at the Floccesy Ranch, playing with the little Mareep.

"Hi. What are you doing here?"

"Oh, you know! Travelin' around Unova, taking on the Unova Pokemon League, and-"

"Weren't you supposed to be staying in Johto?"

Ibuki froze, then trying to remember to back when she and her friends were in the Pokemon Training school.

* * *

_"Hey Ibuki," Hajime Hinata called over his eccentric friend._

_"Wazzup Hajime-chan?!" Ibuki asked, walking towards her friend with the ahoge._

_"We're all planning to go to Unova, y'know, since we're graduating soon." Hajime explained to her. "Can you ask Clair if you can go?"_

_"Ibuki shall try, Hajime-chan!" The horned girl saluted._

* * *

Needless to say, Clair said no.

"W-well..."

"You ran away from home, didn't you?"

"Well, Ibuki wouldn't want to say "Run away"..."

"Meaning you left Blackthorn City while Clair was training in the Dragon's Den, catching a boat from Olivine, then heading to the Kanto Airport, ended up in Aspertia, and now here?"

"...Chiaki-chan."

"Yeah?"

"You know your stuff."

* * *

Chiaki sighed as she plopped down in the Floccesy Ranch, petting a Mareep that was on her lap.

"Ibuki, why did you leave home?"

"Because well... Ibuki just wanted to join her friends on their adventures and, uh..."

"You wanted to escape Clair, Lance, and their dragon types. Am I right?"

"Dang, Chiaki-chan! You know everything!" Ibuki told her friend, as she sat down next to her, watching a Lilipup trot up towards her.

"Hey there, horn girl!" A familiar voice yelled.

Ibuki looked to see Hugh running towards her, with his Tepig trotting behind him.

"Hiya, Hugh!" Ibuki exclaimed, standing up, holding the Lilipup in her arms. Mahiru and Byakuya both jumped onto her shoulders.

"And..." Hugh looked over at Chiaki.

Chiaki smiled, as she stood up, placing the Mareep down.

"My name is Nanami Chiaki." She said.

"Well, nice to meet you, Chiaki!" Hugh said, with Ibuki taking notice of the light blush on his face.

"P-Please help us!" The ranch owners yelled, running to the three.

"What's wrong?" Nanami asked.

"We lost one of our Herdier! We can't find him anywhere!"

"Don't worry, we can find him!" Ibuki declared. "Right Hugh? Right Chiaki-chan?"

"Yeah." Nanami nodded with a soft smile.

"Heck yeah, we can!" Hugh smiled.

"Where did you last see him?" Nanami asked the ranch owners.

"He went into the back of the forest!" The female owner said, pointing to the small area in the back.

* * *

"How hard can it be to find a dog?" Ibuki asked the two others as they walked around in the back.

Hugh shrugged. "It could be hard."

"Alright... I got you now!"

The three of them turned as they saw a man in dark clothing cornering a Herdier.

"Quil! Quil!" Mahiru the Cyndaquil squeaked, trotting towards the mysterious man.

"Hey! Get away from me!" The man yelled, kicking the Cyndaquil back.

"Hey! You do NOT kick one of Ibuki's pokemon and get away with it!" Ibuki yelled, grabbing a pokeball.

"Byakuya-chan! Let's go!" Ibuki yelled, tossing the pokeball, which then had Byakuya the Snivy appear from it.

"Let's go, Riolu!" Nanami yelled, throwing her pokeball, which unleashed her Riolu.

"Tepig! Let's go!" Hugh yelled, throwing Tepig's pokeball.

"Tch." The man growled. He quickly grabbed a disk from his pocket, before chucking it at Ibuki's face, before running off.

"Hey!" Hugh yelled, running after the man with his Tepig. "Get back here!"

"Are you okay, Mioda?" Chiaki asked Ibuki, who was rubbing her forehead.

"Ibuki's fineeeee." Ibuki said, with her words slurred a bit. "Just a little Dizzzzzzzzy!"

Chiaki frowned at Ibuki. She then picked up the disk that got thrown at Ibuki and examined it.

"Looks like you got a TM, Mioda." Chiaki said, handing it to Ibuki.

"A T-what?" Ibuki asked.

"A TM. It stands for Technical Machine. It can give a Pokemon of your choice a move. It depends on which Pokemon you choose however. Some Pokemon won't be able to learn the move."

"Ohhhhh!" Ibuki then placed the TM in her bag. "Good to know, Chiaki-chan!"

"Let's go find Hugh now." Chiaki gave the energetic girl a small smile.

* * *

"And return Herdier to its owners!" Ibuki pointed at the Herdier, except it wasn't there. "Huh?! Did it run away?"

"No, it walked away to its owners, I think." Chiaki replied.

"Oh. Then Hugh!" Ibuki said, racing ahead, Chiaki following at a slower pace. Reaching the front of the ranch, Ibuki found Hugh looking around wildly. He turned upon hearing her.

"He was too fast and I lost him! Damn it!" Hugh said, and at that moment Chiaki caught up to them.

"It's alright, Hugh, I don't think this will be our last run in with those sorts of people. You did all you could." Chiaki assured Hugh, who relaxed slightly while also slightly flushed.

"Th-Thanks..." Hugh stuttered slightly. "Anyway, I have to go now. Tell these people to take better care of their Pokemon!" Hugh then ran off, and Ibuki turned to Chiaki.

"Ibuki thinks that was pretty weird." Ibuki stated, and Chiaki nodded absently, barely suppressing a yawn. "Chiaki-chan, don't fall asleep! Ibuki thinks it's time for a Gym battle!" Letting out a battle cry, Ibuki hopped on her bike and sped out of the ranch, barely avoiding crashing into the owners of the ranch, who thanked her for finding Herdier as she sped past. Chiaki sighed lightly, a smile on her face before walking toward the exit, but not before stopping to pet the Mareep again.

Ibuki zoomed through Floccesy Town and Route 19, all the way back to Aspertia before she realised something.

"Aw crap! Ibuki totally left Chiaki-chan back on the ranch!" Ibuki groaned, and turned her bike around. She sped through Route 19 again before she was stopped.

"Hey there, I thought I saw someone zoom past!" A voice called, and Ibuki halted to see a man with spiky red and orange hair at the top of a small cliff. To Ibuki's horror, the man jumped.

"OH MY GO-" Ibuki's yell caught in her throat when the man landed unharmed. "Oh." The man chuckled.

"It's alright, I'm used to that jump after doing it so many times." The man explained, which made Ibuki think he was slightly crazy. "You mightn't recognise me, your accent sounds foreign. My name's Alder, and I was the Champion of this region up until recently."

"A former Champion?! Cool!" Ibuki exclaimed, new-found respect taking form in her. "Teach me!" Alder laughed again.

"I don't think I can teach you much, you seem to know a lot already. I see potential in you." Alder smiled. Ibuki's face lit up.

"You really mean that?!" Ibuki exclaimed happily, and Alder nodded.

"I do. The new Gym Leader's probably reached Aspertia already, so it would be worth your time to head back there. Although... Why were you headed back this way so soon?" Alder asked, but before Ibuki could respond, Chiaki walked over to the two, and they turned to see her. "Ah, Chiaki. I take it you and Ibuki know each other?"

"Yes, we were part of the same Trainer's School in Johto." Chiaki told Alder before looking at Ibuki. "Your demeanor suggests you were coming back for me after forgetting about me." Ibuki's eyes widened.

"That was totally it! Chiaki-chan, you really know your stuff!" Ibuki grinned. Chiaki smiled softly.

"You don't have to worry about me. I know you're excited about taking on the Gyms, so I don't mind trailing behind. Besides..." At this point Chiaki yawned. "I made new friends."

"You did?" Ibuki asked in confusion.

"Yeah, after you left, I caught one of the Mareep, with the owners' permission. And I met Hugh today, too." Chiaki explained.

"So it seems you two are travelling together, I gather?" Alder asked, and Chiaki nodded. "Very well, this is good to hear. I bid you ladies farewell." Alder grabbed one of the Pokeballs off his poncho and threw it, revealing a Volcarona. Jumping onto its back, Alder's Volcarona then flew off in the opposite direction of Aspertia.

"Holy crap! That was an awesomely epic Pokemon! Ibuki wants one!" Ibuki exclaimed, in awe of the Volcarona. Chiaki laughed quietly.

"Let's GO BACK to Aspertia, Ibuki." Chiaki reminded Ibuki.

"Oh yeah, the Gym Leader! Let's do this!" Before the two set off, Ibuki put her bike in her bag and let out Byakuya and Mahiru, who took a shoulder each. Chiaki let out her Riolu, and they walked back to Aspertia together.

Once they were back in Aspertia, Ibuki and Chiaki headed over to the Gym. Chiaki recalled Riolu before they entered.

"Huh? Isn't this a Trainer School?" Ibuki asked, confused when she saw desks and a blackboard. Chiaki went past the rows of desks.

"Over here, Ibuki. There's a door leading to an outdoor area." Chiaki pointed out, and Ibuki headed over.

"Oh, Ibuki sees." Ibuki then walked outside to see a YOUNG MAN in his mid to late teens in a white button-up shirt and red tie talking to two students of the school. He turned upon hearing footsteps.

"Ah, you must be a challenger to the Gym. Well, my first challenger actually. I was just INSTALLED as the Gym Leader here." He said, gesturing to the area. "I'm Cheren. Before you can battle me, however, there's something you must first do." He turned to the students. "We have our first challenger! Get into position!" Both students then occupied a different chalked-out battlefield. "Beat these two, and I will accept your challenge. I look forward to it." Cheren then walked to the back of the area to observe. Ibuki turned to Chiaki, hearing her stance shift.

"I think it would be best if I stayed here for now. It's your challenge, so I don't want to interfere." Chiaki said, standing to the side and giving Ibuki an encouraging smile.

"Okay, Chiaki-chan! Ibuki won't let you down!" Ibuki exclaimed, heading into battle with the first student.

A few Vine Whips and Embers later, Ibuki defeated the two students, each commending Ibuki on her skill. Ibuki then went back to Chiaki.

"Ibuki thinks Byakuya-chan and Mahiru-chan need a rest." Ibuki told Chiaki.

"Here, let me heal them." Chiaki reached into her backpack and pulled out a few Potions. She first sprayed Byakuya, then Mahiru. "There, they should be rested enough to battle, but we'll take them to the Pokemon Center afterwards, okay?"

"Thanks, Chiaki-chan! Wish Ibuki luck!" With a grin on her face, Ibuki headed over to the back of the Gym, determined to win her first Gym badge. When she reached Cheren, he gave her a smirk.

"Nice work on defeating those students. They're at the top of their class. But, can you defeat me, a seasoned Trainer?" Cheren crossed his arms and assumed a confident pose.

"You bet Ibuki can! Ibuki bets she can do it with just Byakuya-chan, too!" Ibuki replied, a challenge in her tone. Cheren's raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? This, I'd like to see. Let's begin, my first challenge as a Gym Leader and yours at the beginning of the road to the Pokemon League!" Cheren then threw out his first Pokeball, a Patrat appearing in a flash of white light. Byakuya jumped off Ibuki's shoulder and glared at Patrat.

"Ibuki's counting on you, Byakuya-chan! Use Growth!" Byakuya took the time to focus, growing a little bigger.

"Raising your stats, I see. Patrat, Work Up!" Patrat seemed to pump itself up, looking more determined and fierce.

"Byakuya-chan, use Growth once more!" Byakuya CONTINUED to grow.

"Patrat, charge in with Tackle!" Heeding Cheren, Patrat ran at Byakuya, then leaped forward.

"Byakuya-chan, stop it with a Vine Whip!" As Patrat got closer, a vine shot out of Byakuya and smacked Patrat, sending it flying back. It got up quickly, not done yet. "Do it again!"

"What a powerful move that was! I see your strategy, but it's very predictable. Patrat, leap over the vines and Bite!" As Byakuya's vines CLOSED in on Patrat, it jumped forward, skipping over the vine and getting a bite on Byakuya, who cried out.

"Tackle now, Byakuya! You've got it!" Ibuki called, and Byakuya smacked into Patrat, who couldn't dodge due to the CLOSE proximity. Patrat hit the ground and didn't get up.

Cheren's eyes were narrowed as he recalled Patrat and threw out another Pokeball, a Lillipup taking over Patrat.

"I certainly didn't expect you to be this strong. I aim to be a wall for you to overcome, so I'm going to put my all into this! Lillipup, Tackle!" Lillipup started to rush at Byakuya.

"Vine Whip, Byakuya-chan!" Byakuya sent vines toward Lillipup, and the two started getting closer. However, at the last second, Lillipup jumped into the air, dodging the vines, and smacked into Byakuya, sending him flying back, and Mahiru had to jump off Ibuki's shoulder as she caught him.

"You okay, Byakuya-chan?" Ibuki asked.

"Snivy!" Byakuya cried fiercely. Ibuki grinned, and Byakuya jumped back into the battlefield to face Lillipup again, who had gone back to Cheren's side of the field.

"That was just a surprise. We're not down and out yet!" Ibuki called to Cheren, and he grinned.

"I didn't expect you to be, after your performance today. Tackle!" Cheren commanded, and Lillipup charged at Byakuya once more.

"Wrap it, Byakuya-chan!" Ibuki called, and Cheren's eyes WIDENED. Byakuya sent out more vines but instead of smacking Lillipup back, they tripped it up, then wrapped around it and squeezed.

"Lillipup! Get out!" Cheren called, slightly panicked. Lillipup started struggling to ESCAPE the clutches of the vines, but it appeared useless.

"Now Byakuya-chan, finish it off with a Tackle!" Byakuya threw Lillipup into the air, who yapped in pain. Byakuya then leaped at Lillipup, colliding with it and sending it flying back to Cheren. Cheren threw his Pokeball to recall it before it hit the ground. A rueful smile crossed his face.

"We did it, Byakuya-chan!" Ibuki cried out, hugging Mahiru and Byakuya once he went back to Ibuki. While Ibuki and her Pokemon CELEBRATED, Cheren walked over to Ibuki.

"Well done. That was certainly a thrilling battle. I didn't expect that Wrap move at all." Cheren started, and Ibuki looked at him, smiling uncontrollably. "I present you with the Basic Badge as a symbol of your win here." Cheren handed Ibuki a small, rectangular badge, which Ibuki quickly accepted and placed in the appropriate spot in her badge case.

"Woo hoo!" Ibuki cheered, and Cheren chuckled at her energy.

"I also wanted to give you this." Cheren handed Ibuki a disk, which she placed in her bag. "That's the TM for Work Up. It boosts the OFFENSIVE stats of a Pokemon, so it's especially good for a mixed attacker. The best part is that TMs are reusable, so don't be shy about using it."

"Thank you, Cheren!" Ibuki grinned.

"No, thank you, Ibuki. You truly made my first battle as a Gym Leader exciting, and I'm determined to be the best Gym Leader I can be!" Cheren replied with a smile, walking back to the end of the outdoor area. Ibuki headed back toward the school, where Chiaki was waiting. Well, she was actually asleep.

"Chiaki-chan! Did you miss the WHOLE battle?!" Ibuki exclaimed, shocked. Chiaki's eyes opened slowly, and she rubbed the sleepiness out of them.

"No, I was just taking a little nap while you were talking. I saw it all. CONGRATULATIONS, Ibuki." Chiaki offered a smile for Ibuki, who sighed in relief.

"Good, because Ibuki was afraid you didn't see her epic strategy!" Ibuki said. "That would have bee a bummer!"


End file.
